Marin Cooking

My boys (ages 9 and 11) enjoy cooking so when I saw that Christa offers cooking parties, I knew it would be a great gift for them. They each invited a friend and Christa skillfully managed the 4 boys in the kitchen — making mini meatballs, preparing fresh pasta and having A LOT of fun. And then the best part, getting to savor a great meal that they made together. Christa is very pleasant, professional and I look forward to using her services again. Highly recommend!

I recently hosted one of Christa’s cooking parties for 8 people. It was a really fun evening — the food was delicious, Christa was super prepared, taught us all some new tricks in the kitchen and left our kitchen sparkling clean. I would definitely do this again.

I’ve had the opportunity to work with Christa and her team on many events over the last 3 years and each time I am more impressed. From private at-​home events for 40 to fundraisers for 400, she delivers on the most amazing food and excellent service. In addition, we are always on a tight budget for our fundraisers and somehow she manages to deliver delicious food made from high-​quality ingredients that appeal to both kids and parents. She is a pleasure to have in my home and in the high stress environment of a large event, she is never flustered. She catered a party at my home last night and every time I turned around, someone else was raving about the food and asking for her number.

I wouldn’t hesitate to refer Marin Cooking to anyone looking to host a party! Christa has done four (5 later this month) moms night out parties for 14 – 16 people at my home. She always comes up with the best menu ideas, does all of the shopping and brings all of the cooking supplies. Christa makes cooking so simple and fun for everyone. I can’t recommend her highly enough!

I’m a bit hesitant to give away my best secret but I use Marin Cooking for almost every occasion I host now. Christa has done everything from girls nights to parties for 80 on my deck to a fancy holiday party with a dinner buffet for 50 to a charity event I organized for 400. I’ve also used her for intimate dinner parties.
I love to cook but honestly, I really can’t do it for much less than I pay Christa and the food and service are impeccable and I get the benefit of not being stressed. People are constantly asking me to host events at my house now. I like to think it’s my charming personality :) but I think it’s Christa’s cooking and how easy and fun it is for everyone. I can’t recommend her highly enough. She does drop off dinners and full catered events.

Christa just led a cooking dinner party at my house for my birthday this weekend and we could NOT have had more fun. She was so organized and made it really fun and interesting for all the guests to get involved, regardless of their level of cooking experience. She is such a nice person to work with and everyone learned a little something, made a little contribution to the meal, and the result was a delicious, relaxed and really fun evening!

Marin Cooking was such a delight. I did a private cooking class at my house and although I did not have ALL the cooking ware one would usually need, it wasn’t a problem at all. Christa was thorough with bringing anything I did not have and was a great teacher. She also helped clean up! It was a lot of fun and I definitely recommend it.

I recently attended a small bridal shower that Christa catered… what a wonderful experience! The gathering was casual and on a weeknight at 7pm so we weren’t exactly sure what to expect in terms of food. I think we all had a small dinner with our famiies before we arrived as it was beyond the dinner hour but as it turns out… we certainly didn’t need to! The variety of appetizers was bountiful and most delicious and each one balanced the other: a refreshing platter of crudite beautifully dispayed with a tarragon dip, followed by a decadent cheese and fruit platter. I think the minced chicken in lettuce cups were my favorite but the sundried tomato tart on puff pastry was divine as well. I highly recommend Marin Cooking for your event if you are looking for a personal and professional culinary experience!

A friend and I went to one of Christa’s baking classes during the holidays, and we learned so much, had a fun afternoon, and took home lots of goodies!
Can’t wait to take another class this spring…

What a great evening! Christa started by briefly describing the 7 dishes the 6 of us could make. They all seemed complicated, but by the end of the evening we had created all 7 delicious dishes! Christa showed us some great techniques and helpful tips along the way — such as the pros and cons of different brands of puff pastry — and always seemed to be there to stir the pan or check the oven so that nothing burned. We collectively made all 7 dishes with her guidance and assistance. And what an amazing amount of delicious savory baked goods we created. We ate so much when each dish came out of the oven, but we all were able to take home lots of leftover goodies to share with our families. Highlights were the Caramelized Onion and Gorgonzola Tart, Flaky Cheese & Pecan Spirals, Spinach & Gruyère Quiche and Potato, Onion & Fontina Galette. So, so good. Highly recommended!

Our moms group just did a cooking party with Christa and it was such an awesome time. We were in teams of two and we each made a side dish. There were 6 total dishes and every single one of them was amazingly delicious. One was a mushroom bread pudding. I don’t like mushrooms but this was so savory and tasty I couldn’t stop eating it. Everything about the cooking party was top notch. The best part was after cooking and eating all our yummy dishes we didn’t even have to clean up. I would highly recommend this type of party.

I just graduated from Christa’s six month professional pastry course and couldn’t have been happier. She is an excellent chef and a fantastic teacher — always willing to help in and outside of the classroom. Having worked in a number of the best bakeries in the Bay Area, she is extremely knowledgeable and always willing to offer up helpful advice on ways to become more refined and efficient. As an added bonus, while firm and instructive, she is always cheerful and ready to laugh and chat with her students over a dessert or two at the end of class! I would recommend her to anyone interested in culinary classes.

Christa is a wonderful personal chef. She created great meals that my daughter and I loved. She was so easy to work with too. I have food allergies and am a picky eater and she was able to make delicious meals for us, that fit our needs and food preferences.